As the field and utility of non-conductive composite materials has increased, so has the need for identifying suitable conductive lubricants and coatings that can be easily and substantially permanently applied to such materials, while lending conductive characteristics to non- or marginally-conductive substrates, such as, for example, composite substrate materials.
Composite materials (“composites”) are understood to be materials from two or more constituent materials having different physical or chemical properties that join to produce a material with characteristics different from the characteristics of the individual constituent materials. Composites include composite building materials, reinforced plastics, metal composites, ceramic composites, etc.
Fiber-reinforced composite materials have been used in high-performance products that are lightweight, yet strong enough to sustain harsh loading conditions, such as, for example, aircraft, spacecraft, nautical vehicles, racing automobiles, etc. Carbon composite is an important composite material gaining recognized usefulness for aircraft structures, spacecraft structures, terrestrial and aquatic vehicles, heat shields, solar panels, satellites, antenna reflectors, etc. While composite materials are often desirable for their strength, and while such materials may desirably be non-conductive or electrically insulative, certain applications could benefit from an increased material conductivity. However, known attempts to improve material conductivity have comprised materials that, while conductive, are opaque and therefore not well-suited for use in a topcoat, as the overall appearance of the topcoat is altered by the incorporation of the conductive material.